What are the Major Advantages and Disadvantages of Hydroponics Farming in India?
India is a country whose socio-economic culture heavily depends on the agriculture environment. A significant population of India depends on agriculture jobs for their livelihoods. So, in the face of this technical and digital revolution of the world, India’s agriculture should experience changes and innovations, which increases the sustainability of the particular sector. There are many methods for farming that enhance the efficiency of soil and yields better returns. Today, we are going to analyze “Hydroponics.” which is an effective and trending method for farming and gardening. Hydroponics in India has started to pick up the pace over the past few years. Hydroponics is a technique to cultivate plants in sand, gravel, or liquid with added nutrients, but without soil. The nutrients used in Hydroponics can come from different sources. Following is the list of advantages and disadvantages of Hydroponics farming, which will be enough for you to decide how you are going to set up your home garden or diversify your farm! Advantages of Hydroponics: # Soil independent farming: This method facilitates farming in places where land is scarce, or the quality of soil is deteriorating. NASA has also considered Hydroponics as the future of farming to grow and cultivate plants in space for astronauts. 2. Optimization of available land: You can grow plants in your kitchen, bedroom, or a small apartment space. It’s the best method for developing vertical gardens and farms in a very limited patch of land. In the absence of soil, you can grow plants in very close proximity, which results in saving huge space. 3. Control over climate factors: In this method, plants are grown in a controlled environment. That means you have total control Over the exposure to light, temperature, humidity, nutrients supply, etc. This will help you grow your choice of plant regardless of the season. Farmers can produce crops on year-round bases. 4. Reduction in water usage: In Hydroponics, water is recirculated and used again n again. Thus it results in the saving of a vast amount of water compared to traditional soil-based farming. Water loss in this system will only be of two forms- leaks and evaporation. Studies have shown that to grow 1 kg of tomatoes in intensive soil-based farming requires roughly 380-390 litres of water, whereas Hydroponics will use only 40-50 litres of water for the same. 5. Faster and healthier growth of plants: Because you have control over external factors and nutrients available to plants, you can set favourable conditions for plants in terms of light, temperature, humidity, and especially nutrients. Nutrients come in direct contact with the roots of plants, and this helps grow plants faster. Disadvantages of Hydroponics: # Time and commitment: Plants depend on you for their growth instead of depending on nature. In the traditional farming method, nature and soil help in regulating the growth of plants. But that is not the case here. Plants will die more quickly if you fail to take proper care of them. They will require constant attention. 2.The requirement of skilled labour: Hydroponics use advance technologies to operate efficiently. The system controlling the climate factors requires a certain set of skills to manage. The system malfunction will result in obstruction of the growth of plants. 3.Extensive dependency over electricity: The hydroponics system relies on the constant flow of water and electricity. Proper safety should be ensured as water and electricity are in close vicinity. Backup options should be readily available in times of blackout or electricity/water system failure. So, these were the advantages and disadvantages of the Hydroponics system. Many companies provide Hydroponics services in India. You can reach out to such companies for the training program, or you can hire them to set it up the whole system for you as per your requirements.